Catskill Mountain Rye

A rye bread that captures that New York deli flavor right from your bread machine. Caraway seeds give it the signature aroma, rye flour provides the earthy tang, and honey rounds out the edges with just enough sweetness.

Vital wheat gluten is the ingredient that makes a bread machine rye actually work. Rye flour has almost no gluten of its own, which means without the added gluten flour, the loaf would be a dense, flat puck. The extra gluten gives the yeast something to work with and produces a loaf that rises properly.

This bakes on the standard white bread cycle, nothing fancy. The result is a light-crumbed rye that slices cleanly for sandwiches and toasts up beautifully with a crisp, fragrant crust.

Chef Tips

• Don’t substitute all-purpose flour for the bread flour. Bread flour’s higher protein content works with the vital wheat gluten to give rye bread structure it otherwise lacks.
• Measure the rye flour carefully. Too much and the loaf collapses. The 1:1.75 ratio of rye to bread flour is balanced for a reason.
• Use the standard or white bread cycle, not the whole wheat cycle. The different timing gives better results with this flour ratio.
• Let the loaf cool completely before slicing. Rye bread firms up as it cools and cuts much cleaner when set.

Variations

• Add a tablespoon of cocoa powder and a teaspoon of instant espresso for a pumpernickel-style dark rye.
• Toss in a handful of toasted sunflower seeds at the mix-in stage for extra crunch.
• Swap honey for dark molasses for a deeper, more robust flavor profile.